Dos Manos Kitchen Brings Pupusa Restaurant to Charles River Speedway

The family-run Salvadoran pop-up is opening its first brick-and-mortar location in Brighton.

Apr. 16, 2026 at 6:09pm

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A brightly colored, high-contrast silkscreen print of a single, iconic pupusa repeated in a tight grid pattern, utilizing flat, vibrant, and unnatural neon color palettes overlapping with heavy black photographic outlines to turn this traditional Salvadoran dish into modern pop art.Dos Manos Kitchen's handcrafted pupusas take center stage in a vibrant pop art celebration of the family-run Salvadoran restaurant's first brick-and-mortar location.Boston Today

Dos Manos Kitchen, a local Salvadoran pop-up known for its handmade pupusas, is opening its first restaurant at The Charles River Speedway in Brighton. Founded during the pandemic by Chef Edwin Orellana and his wife Alexis, Dos Manos has grown from virtual pupusa-making classes to a popular presence at Boston-area festivals and events, hand-crafting over 100,000 pupusas. The new Speedway location will feature a menu centered on both signature and rotating pupusa fillings, as well as other Salvadoran specialties like crispy plantains, elote loco, and minutas.

Why it matters

The opening of Dos Manos Kitchen's first restaurant represents the growth of Boston's Salvadoran food scene and the success of a family-run business that started during the pandemic. It also highlights the continued revitalization of the Charles River Speedway area, which has attracted a number of new food and beverage businesses in recent years.

The details

Dos Manos Kitchen was launched in 2020 when Chef Edwin Orellana started teaching his young daughter how to make pupusas. What began as a family activity soon evolved into virtual pupusa-making classes and a pop-up residency at Somerville's Nibble Kitchen incubator. From there, Edwin and his wife Alexis steadily built Dos Manos into a recognizable name across Boston's festival and pop-up scene. At the new Speedway location, the menu will focus on pupusas with fillings like zucchini and roasted red pepper, ancho-orange marinated chicken, and slow-braised beef, as well as other Salvadoran dishes. The Orellanas have also launched a NuMarket campaign to invite the community to invest directly in the new restaurant.

  • Dos Manos Kitchen was launched during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
  • The team is targeting a mid- to late May 2026 debut for the new restaurant at the Charles River Speedway.

The players

Dos Manos Kitchen

A family-run Salvadoran pop-up catering company known for its handmade pupusas.

Edwin Orellana

The founder of Dos Manos Kitchen and the head chef, who grew up in El Salvador and has worked in several notable Boston kitchens.

Alexis Orellana

The co-founder of Dos Manos Kitchen and Edwin's wife.

The Charles River Speedway

The location where Dos Manos Kitchen will be opening its first brick-and-mortar restaurant, situated in the Brighton neighborhood of Boston.

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What they’re saying

“If you've ever taken a class with us, stopped by a pop-up, catered with us, or simply believed in what we're building, we'd be incredibly grateful for your support in this next step.”

— Alexis Orellana, Co-founder, Dos Manos Kitchen

What’s next

Dos Manos Kitchen is currently targeting a mid- to late May 2026 debut at the Charles River Speedway, pending final preparations.

The takeaway

The opening of Dos Manos Kitchen's first restaurant represents the growth of Boston's Salvadoran food scene and the success of a family-run business that started during the pandemic. It also highlights the continued revitalization of the Charles River Speedway area as a hub for new food and beverage businesses.